Outer Space
by The Smokey Gerbil Cloud
Summary: Oliver Wood and Isabella Riccardi have been friends since second year when Oliver was in the hospital wing after his first Quidditch match. Will their friendship turn into something more?
1. Chapter 1

1991

Chapter One

Isabella

"Riccardi, get down here!" I rolled my eyes as I turned heavily on the broom, heading back towards the hoops.

"What?" I asked impatiently, wanting to get back to training.

"You missed." I smirked at him.

"No I didn't." He raised and eyebrow, confused as ever.

"Uh, yeah, you did. It hit me in the chest, you almost knocked me off my broom!" I grinned at him.

"Who said that wasn't what I was aiming for?" I sped back to Alicia and Angelina, ignoring Oliver's yells to "Get over there or die."  
>"You know he's gonna be pissed, right?" I rolled my eyes at Angelina.<p>

"Is he ever any other way?"  
>"Is who any other way?" I turned to face Harry, who looked slightly worried about what my answer might be.<p>

"Oliver. Is he any other way than pissed at me?" He shrugged and flew a few meters away as Oliver started to approach.

"Alright, that's enough. Get inside the lot of you." I grinned at Al and Angie, thinking I had gotten off Scot-free. "Except you." No one turned around, we all knew whom it was he was talking to.

"What?" I groaned as they all landed and started walking to the castle with many shouts of "Bye Izzy!" echoing after them.

"Land." I followed his lead and sighed when I planted my feet onto the hard ground of the Quidditch pitch. "Now, run three laps of the pitch."

"What! You can not be serious! I was only joking about the Quaffle thing!" He shrugged.

"Actually I needed to talk to you and since you missed yesterdays practise this is to keep you fit." I looked at him in shock. Keep me fit? What the hell was that meant to mean?

"I'll even run with you." I smirked at him.

"You know, I don't think I've ever seen you actually run." He grinned at me and pushed me forward, forcing me to run. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"

"I want help with a few Quidditch plays." I stopped running.

"You mean, Oliver Wood, chief captain stubborn ass, needs _my_ help?" He rolled his eyes at my shocked tone. "I knew you weren't as smart as you looked."

"Hey! I'm plenty smart. I lured you here didn't I?" I raised an eyebrow.  
>"'Lured' me?" His eyes widened and his gaze focused on his shoes, his face flushed.<p>

"I didn't…I didn't mean it like that." I grinned at him.

"Oh I know. I just love watching you squirm. It's really rather fun." He glared at me and tried to push me forward again but I stayed still. "Oliver you know I was just teasing right? I didn't mean it. Well, I meant the stubborn bit but the rest I didn't. I mean, you ace like, every test." A small smile grew onto his face.

"I know you didn't, but did you have to get all mushy on me?" I grinned at him.

"I just had to make sure I didn't offend you or anything." He raised an eyebrow.

"You? Offend me? I don't think you could. I mean, look how tiny you are!" He grabbed my hands and held them into the air. I smirked at him, thinking of a comeback.

"Bradley Collins didn't seem to mind them." He shook his head.

"You bring that up whenever anyone says something. You really need to get a new comeback." I pulled my hands out of his and sprinted away, only for him to catch up to me a few meters later. We ran the last lap and sprinted into the change rooms as it started to rain.

"Some weather huh?" I rolled my eyes.

"You've known me for almost five years and the only thing you can talk about is the weather?" He glanced down then back up. I glanced down and realised our Quidditch jumpers were almost completely see through from the rain, and plastered to our skin.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

1988

Oliver

"I think he's waking up." A voice said, close to my left side.

"Perhaps, dear." I opened my eyes to two blurry figures. One by my left side, though blurry, was unmistakably a girl, while the other, standing tall at the end of my bed, was clearly madam Pompfrey.

"Ha, he is." My eyes cleared and I stared up at madam Pompfrey. What the hell was I doing in the hospital wing? The last thing I remember was the steady roar of the crowd during the game. My very first Quidditch game in fact.

"What happened?" I barely registered how hoarse my voice was before Pompfrey answered.

"Bludger dear. Hit you in the head, hard. You've been out for nigh on a week. Minerva sent the young one to look after you and make sure you got back to the common okay when you woke. Poor lass has been sitting here when she didn't have lessons." I turned to face the girl at my bedside. Her pale face was framed with dark locks that curled past her shoulders. She wore her school uniform, obviously lessons had finished recently. Her light green eyes watched me wearily, she looked quite tired. In fact, she looked like she might need help back to the common room.

"Hi!" I exclaimed as soon as we exited the hospital wing. She rolled her eyes and sped up a little.

"Hi." I grinned at her as we passed the statue of Boris the Bewildered.

"My names Oliver. What's your's?" She glanced at me for a second before shaking her head.

"Isabella. Now, any idea how to get back to the common room from here?" I raised an eyebrow and looked around.

"So that's why we're on the fifth floor! Actually, you got it almost right. We just have to turn here," We turned a sharp right into a brightly lit corridor, at the end of which was the Grand Staircase.

"Huh. And I thought I was heading in the wrong direction."

"Alright Wood?" I looked up as my Quidditch captain, Charlie Weasley, bustled forward looking slightly anxious.

"I'm fine." Isabella rolled her eyes.

"Pompfrey said he needed to rest for another week, but after that you can have him for training. Personally I don't see the appeal. I mean, what's the point?" The entire Quidditch team – which had been following Charlie – groaned impatiently and started dragging Charlie away from us.

"You know that was stupid right?" She smirked at me and scoffed.

"I love Quidditch. I just knew that if Charlie thought he was dealing with someone who hated Quidditch he would see that no matter how much I love it I'm not going to let you leave my sight for the next week." I lifted an eyebrow and she glared at it.

"Yes you can go to the toilet on your own, just as long as you don't climb out the window with your broomstick clutched in your hands." I chuckled as she rolled her eyes once more and muttered "Boys" under her breath. I grimaced as I entered the common room. Was everything usually this loud?

"IZZY!" Two others tackled the girl next to me. One with straight blonde hair and ice-blue eyes and the other with frizzy, copper-coloured hair and brown eyes. The blonde looked up at me and winked.

"Oh, and who's this?" She asked Isabella, never taking her eyes from my face.

"Carrie, leave Oliver alone. He's the all Quidditch type, probably not interested in dating at all." The blond, Carrie, rolled her eyes and turned to the red head.

"Oh, yeah, they're good for each other. Add in stubborn and self-righteous and they'd be the same person."

"You forgot the whole god complex thing."

"I told you last time, I. DO. NOT. HAVE. A. GOD. FREAKING. COMPLEX." Iz enunciated, glaring at her two supposed friends. "If anything you do _Jessica_." The other girl rolled her eyes.

"I hate that. Every time we fight you use my full name, it sucks. I mean, you like your name so I can't use that, so maybe I should just call you by your middle name. Hello, Francesca." They all cracked up laughing simultaneously and fell to the floor.

"Fine Jessie, you win."

"Um…" Isabella's eyes shot open and she stood up, leaving the others still incapacitated on the floor.

"Sorry." I nodded and glanced back at the large group of friends I had collected since the first week.

"I can tell this is going to be a fun week."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Izzy

1988

"Oliver! I thought I told you _not_ to try and escape!" Oliver cursed as he spun around fast enough to trip himself on the broom he had been holding before my outburst.

"But I wanna play Quidditch!" He groaned, rolling onto his back so he could see my face.  
>"You only have six days left! You can play all the Quidditch you want then." He grimaced as he stood up, gripping his broom tightly.<p>

"Or, you could let me out for training now." I rolled my eyes and he growled in frustration.

"What don't you understand! If you fly right now you could die! A change in gravity and height that quickly will put pressure on your body, and could reopen the crack in your THICK SKULL! Once again, YOU COULD DIE!" Shock crossed his face, finally registering in the fact that if I wasn't here he might have died.

"I won't play Quidditch for another week if…" He trailed off as a group of giggling girls passed us, staring intently at Oliver. "You take me to the library." My eyebrows raised, then descended again in suspicion.

"Why? Oh god, you aren't gonna try and jump me in the restricted section are you?" His head tilted on the side in confusion even as he chuckled, taking on the look of a bemused puppy.

"Jump you? Nah, I was thinking I could catch up on my homework before checking out Quidditch through the Ages." I breathed a sigh of relief before grabbing his broom and stalking in to the girls' dorms. I heard the resulting crash as he tried to follow me.

"Stupid booby trapped stairs!" I heard him shout faintly as I closed the door. I dragged his broom over to my bed and stepped onto the high mattress, hauling the broom with me. I swung Oliver's most prized possession onto the canopy of my bed. I jumped down and walked out again, sliding down the ramp where the stairs were before. I stood quickly dragging Oliver through the common room entrance. I let go of his arm and trudged towards the library.

"Hey, can you slow down a little? Walking to fast makes me dizzy, Izzy." I rolled my eyes. Great, he found my nickname. I reluctantly slowed a little. "Thanks." I nodded, smiling as I saw who was walking towards us.

"Alli!" I called running at her, leaving Oliver behind, hugging her tightly. "You're alive! I though you said Professor Snape would kill you when you didn't turn in your potions essay! How the hell was I going to explain that one to mum?" She grinned at me before turning to Oliver.

"One, yes, I'm alive. Turns out it was in my bag the whole time. Two, who is this boy that's following you around like a puppy dog?" Oliver glared at me as I giggled.

"I'm am not! I'm Oliver, the boy who is stuck with Isabella for another six days before I can play Quidditch again!" Alli turned back to me and grinned.

"Jessie's right, you two truly are perfect for each other." I slapped her arm and glared at her.

"When the hell was the last time you talked to Jess?" Alli smirked and danced around me towards the common room.

"Now." As she said the word I looked up by chance and saw the two buckets of paint heading towards me and jumped out of the way, pulling Oliver with me.

"So not funny!" I growled as I narrowly avoiding the invading red paint. "Scourgify!" I muttered, watching all the paint go back into the buckets and poised myself near the corner.

"Did we get her?" Carrie asked as she and Jessie ran around the corner, disappointment rising on their faces as they saw Oliver was not covered in paint and that I wasn't there, undoubtedly meaning I didn't get hit. I launched myself out of the shadows and dumped the two buckets of paint on them and ran back to Oliver.

"To the library, batman!" Oliver looked at me weird and I just grinned back at him as we raced away towards the library. I was panted gruffly when we reached the library, slowing to a dignified walk as I pushed the doors open.

"So, what homework was I assigned since I've been unconscious?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"It's Sunday. You were knocked out on Friday. There was no homework assigned." He chuckled at me and walked towards the sporting section.

"Guess I'll just have to read Quidditch books for the whole…how long?" I glared at him as I sat down in one of the hardwood chairs.

"It's about an hour to tea. By the way, if they want us to study so much, why do they make the chairs so goddamn hard?" He chuckled, shaking his head slightly as he piled a few Quidditch books on the table. I snatched one out of the pile and watched it sway precariously. "I think that's enough books Oliver." He grinned at me sheepishly and sat down cautiously, not wanting to knock the pile more. "What's your favourite animal?" I asked, getting bored of the silence already. He thought about it for a few seconds before answering.

"Probably an eagle, cos it flies." I grinned at him.

"Eagles may fly, but ferrets don't get sucked into jet engines." He looked at me in confusion as he tried not to laugh.

"So your favourite animals a ferret?" He asked, eyebrows high, his eyes glistening with amusement.

"Oh god no. My favourite animals a panther. It's just so…smooth. So unlike the guys I know."

"Hey!" He shouted indignantly, finally catching on that he was now a guy I knew. "I'm smooth. I'm so smooth I'm practically silky." I snorted in disbelief.

"Silky? Silky? Wow, you really are smooth." He glared at me slightly.

"And you're insane, but I don't talk about that, now do I?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Insane? You've known me for a day and you already class me as insane? Wow, I'm getting good at this."


End file.
